Halloween 2011 & the Halloween Spirit

Posted by Sam on Oct 17, 2011 in Education | 1 comment

Halloween 2011 is getting close & preparations are in full swing for many people. What are the reasons behind the Halloween spirit?

Halloween 2011 is not far away now. Only 2 weeks before you can dress up in scary Halloween costumes, go trick or treating and celebrate with a Halloween party. But where does all the Halloween tradition come from?

Halloween Spirit

Halloween is a mixture of traditions from different cultures and religions. The name itself, Halloween, is a modern word playing on the original phrase ‘All Hallow’s Eve’.

All Hallow’s Eve marks the end of the Celtic year. Legend has it that it is the evening when the Halloween spirit of anyone who had passed away that year returned to try to possess the body of the living.

To ward off the Halloween spirit, people would wear scary Halloween costumes and masks in an attempt to frighten away the Halloween spirits.

Apple bobbing is a much loved Halloween party game that many will play at Halloween 2011. It is thought to date back to Roman times when their Goddess of Fruit, Pomona, was celebrated in October. Her symbol was an apple.

Halloween trick or treat is thought that have evolved out of a Christian custom in Europe called souling. Christians would knock on doors and pray for any dead relatives in return for a ‘soul cake’.

Pumpkin carving is another tradition that has it’s roots in Europe. There is a folk tale in Ireland that tells of a man called Jack. A bit of a ‘jack the lad’ and a trickster, it’s told he once even managed to trap Satan in a tree.

When Jack died he was refused entry into Heaven because of his bad behaviour and Satan, obviously not best pleased at being tricked, refused him entry into hell.

However, he did give him a single ember to light his way in the darkness. Jack placed the ember into a turnip to make it last.

For Halloween 2011 of course we will carve out pumpkins, but originally it was the plentiful turnip that had that honor.

Halloween Decorations

Halloween decorations come in all shapes and sizes of course. Here are some that we came across in our research that you could try for your Halloween 2011 party.